Keys for Kids

Part of the Family

Olivia had always liked to hear how her parents loved her from the time they first saw her at the adoption agency. But as she approached her twelfth birthday, the fact that she was adopted didn't seem so entertaining any more. I don't really belong to anybody, she thought one day as she picked wild berries in a field near her home. Sure, Mom and Dad took care of me since I was six weeks old, but I'm not a blood relative, so I'm not really a member of their family.

As Olivia started home, a rather dirty, skinny little dog timidly approached her. "Hi, little guy," Olivia said gently. "Did someone dump you along the road? Why don't you come live with me?" It didn't take much coaxing to get the hungry puppy to follow her home. I wonder if Mom will let me keep him, she thought. Nice word--Mom. I wish it were really true.

Olivia's mother saw them coming and went out to meet them. "Did you bring company for supper?" she asked, dropping to her knees and stroking the little dog. "I wonder if he has a name? He doesn't look like he's got a home."

"Can I keep him?" Olivia asked eagerly.

"We need to find out if he has an owner," Mom replied. "If not . . . we'll see."

No owner was found, and Olivia's parents decided she could keep the dog. She called him Bingo.

"Well," said Dad one morning, "it looks as if your adopted dog is happy here with you, Olivia."

A slow smile crossed Olivia's face as the truth sank in. That's right! she thought. Bingo and I really belong together, even if it wasn't always that way--and Mom and Dad and I belong together, too. Bingo wouldn't want to be any other place in the world, and neither would I!

"Being adopted isn't a bad thing, you know," continued Dad. "In fact, all of us who are Christians are adopted, too. We're adopted into God's family."

Olivia giggled and gave her dad a big hug, "We're one big, happy family of adoptees--even Bingo," she said.

HOW ABOUT YOU? Are you adopted? To be adopted is a wonderful thing—it makes you part of a family. You may or may not have been adopted into your physical family, but if you’re a Christian, you’ve been adopted into God’s family. When you trust Jesus as Savior, you become a child of God. Have you put your trust in Him? If not, do so today.

TODAY'S KEY VERSE:Galatians 4:4-5 (KJV) God sent forth His Son . . . that we might receive the adoption as sons.